Shooting game employing moving targets



June 18, 1968 L. c. HORTA 3,383,910

SHOOTING GAME EMPLOYING MOVING TARGETS Filed Jan. 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 1

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SHOOTING GAME EMPLOYING MOVING TARGETS Filed Jan. 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 2

VII] Ill/I/I/l/IAf/l/I/l/l l/fl United States Patent 4 Claims. 61.273-101 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A game having a gun for firing a projectile, a rotatable arm releasably supporting a target and an actuator mechanism which produces rotation of the arm, cocks the gun and fires a projectile from the gun.

The present invention relates to a shooting game employing moving targets such as aircraft models.

The game in accordance with the present invention comprises a platform whereon is mounted a firing device adapted to discharge projectiles which are aimed at model aircraft or other objects arranged as moving targets by being replaceably suspended in appropriate manner from a rotor secured on a post erected on the same platform, the arrangement being such that the firing device and the device causing the displacement of the moving targets are both actuated by the same operating mechanism.

According to a feature of the invention, the arrangement has been devised so that the game may be accommodated on a table top and whether the projectiles are well aimed or off target, their trajectories do not extend beyond the confines of the said platform, so that the said projectiles return automatically to the said firing device in all cases.

The game according to the invention is characterized in that it comprises a base having a sloping upper platform the lower portion of which carries a model anti-aircraft gun adapted to discharge ball-shaped projectiles, whereas its higher portion carries a post in the form'of a tower the upper part of which carries one or more rotary arms on the extremities of which are mounted in easily releasable manner moving targets such as model aircraft, arranged so that discharged projectiles fall onto the said sloping platform along which they may roll or slide owing to gravity to return into the firing chamber of the gun. The gun is operated by means of a firing mechanism which may be worked at will manually, the rotation of the said arms carrying the targets being effected by means of a transmission system which is equally operated by the said firing mechanism, in such manner that when a shot results in a hit, the target is detached from its securing element and knocked down onto the sloping platform and may thereafter be replaced in position at will.

The firing mechanism comprises an actuating lever which is coupled axially to a firing lever, the unattached extremity of the latter having secured to it a firing or launching spring extending into the firing chamber of the gun, the firing lever comprising a thrust element, the whole being arranged so that the motion imparted to the actuating lever causes the firing lever to pivot as well, thereby compressing the said spring against the projectile in the firing position, the said projectile in its turn being held back by means of a resiliently mounted trigger element, so that when the actuating lever is pulled back to its rearmost position, it causes the trigger element to be drawn aside to release the projectile which is discharged by the sudden expansion of the spring, the actuating lever being returned to its stable initial position by means of an appropriate return spring.

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The transmission system assuring the rotation of the arms carrying the targets comprises a rod hingedly se cured at one extremity to the actuating lever of the firing mechanism, whereas its other extremity is secured to a rack engaging a pinion. The pinion has its spindle connected to a coil spring either direct or optionally by means of coupling adaptor plates or the like, the spring being situated within the post carrying the rotor arms and coupled to the hub of the said arms, the said radial rotor arms being secured to their hub so that they may be folded alongside the post or along each other or in other appropriate manner for stowage, the whole being contrived in such manner that when a thrust is exerted on the coupling rod during the cocking operation, the said rack is brought into engagement with the pinion and rotates the same, whereas during the return stroke of the actuating lever, the said coupling rod has a pull exerted on it so as to swivel the rack on a fixed peg or the like, thereby disengaging the rack from the pinion, the rotation of the pinion being imparted to the coil spring which latter transmits rotation to the rotor hub, with the feature that during this operation the said spring undergoes a loading action by virtue of its helical winding, intended to produce continuity in the rotation of the arms during the inactive periods of the pinion between successive firing operations.

The moving targets or model aircraft are secured to the rotor arms by insertion of an integral depending projection projecting into a hook-shaped extremity of the corresponding arm, so that on being struck by a projectile, the target is detached from its seat and falls onto the sloping platform. Each target has an abutment situated in front of the said projection preventing the target from being dislodged accidentally owing to inertia.

A form of embodiment of the present invention is hereinafter described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, the description and drawings being given by way of example and not of limitation.

FIGURE 1 shows a longitudinal cross-section of the game as a whole, illustrating its component parts, the firing mechanism being in the stable uncocked position.

FIGURE 2 shows a portion of the game, the firing mechanism being in the cocked position.

FIGURE 3 is an analogous view showing the manner in which the discharge of the firing mechanism is performed.

FIGURE 4 is a partially sectioned view of a pair of levers incorporated in the firing mechanism.

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of the trigger element of the firing mechanism.

FIGURE 6 is a plan viewof the part of the transmission system comprising the rack and pinion, shown in engagement, for the rotation of the rotor arms carrying the moving targets.

FIGURE 7 is an analogous view showing the rack disengaged from the pinion.

FIGURE 8 shows the underside of a moving target illustrating the manner in which it is mounted on the extremity of a rotor arm.

The same reference numbers have been used throughout for identical parts of the game according to the invention.

A box-shaped case 1 has a flat horizontal base 2, a sloping upper platform 3 representing the field of fire, and wooden end panels 4. The base 2 is faced with a coating or sheathing 5, and the upper platform 3 may equally be covered by an analogous facing or sheathing 6. The base and platform may be made of composition board, wood or other appropriate material.

Contiguous to the lower section of the sloping upper platform 3 is situated a firing mechanism 7, essentially consisting of a gun 8 which is fixedly secured in a socket 9, a coil spring 10 for launching purposes, an actuating lever 11, a firing lever 12 and a trigger element -13.

On the highest portion of the upper platform 3, there is installed the post or tower 14 for suspension of the model planes 15 which may be employed as moving targets. A transmission mechanism 16 couples the firing mechanism 7 with the elements carrying the targets which are formed by rotor arms '17.

The firing mechanism 7 is associated with a ramp 18 facilitating the entry of the projectiles or steel balls 19 into the firing chamber 20 in the breech of the gun 8. The spring 10 is also situated therein, its lower extremity being connected to the firing lever 12 by means of a pin mounted in a bearing 21. This lever has a hub 22 concentric with a hub 23 of the actuating lever 11 which is mounted on a spindle 24. A tension spring 25 connects the levers 11 and 12, returning the firing lever 12 to its initial position after each shot. Another return spring 26 acts on the actuating lever 11 through an extension 27 of the latter. The lever 11 has an operating knob 28 projecting outside the box 1 through a slotted plate 29. The levers 11 and 12 may be made of metal or of plastic material.

The trigger element 13 has an anterior tongue or catch 30 and a longitudinal slot 31 in which is displaceable the actuating lever 11 and traversed by an adjusting screw 32 having a lock nut. The rear part of the trigger element is mounted in a small case containing a compression spring 33 which tends to push the trigger element into the firing chamber 20.

The firing mechanism as a whole is housed within a case 34, which is fixedly mounted within the box 1, which latter is made in two halves.

The transmission system 16 comprises a coupling or push rod 35 whereof one extremity is mounted in bearing portion 36 in the extension 27 of the actuating lever, its other extremity being mounted in a swivelling rack 37 having a toothed edge 38 and bearing with its other edge against an anchoring peg 39. A pinion 40 may be driven by means of the rack 38 and is coupled to a vertical spindle 41.

The spindle 41 which is coupled with a tensioning spring 42, is connected to a lower coupling plate 43 which has a cog 44 acting in lateral contact against a cog on an upper coupling plate 45 which is solid with a stem 46, the latter being connected to a damping spring 47 whose other extremity is connected to a stem 48 mounted in a bearing 49 which is situated in the upper extremity of the frustoconical body 50 of the post 14. The said stem 48 is solidly coupled with a hub 51 having grooves or the like 52 intended to receive the extremities of the rotor arms 17 in hinged or other manner. The casing 50 of the post is engaged with a friction fit within a socket 53 which is secured on the sloping platform 3, the latter being buttressed underneath in this area by a reinforcement 54.

The model planes or other moving targets 15 have a projection 55 which is triangular in outline and engaged in a hook-shaped terminal portion 56 of a corresponding arm 17. A stop 57 is situated in front of the projection in order to prevent excessive separation between the hook and the projection owing to inertia.

The game according to the invention is operated in the following manner. The balls 19 in play are positioned on the ramp 18, and the first one enters the firing chamber 20 and is positioned on the spring 10. At this time, the actuating lever 11 is in its most forward position, acted upon by the spring 26, while the firing lever 12 is in its lowest position. The knob 28 may then be pulled back together with the actuating lever 11, raising the firing lever 12 to compress the spring 10 against the ball which is thereby made to bear against the tongue 30 of the trigger element 13 barring its travel. During this action, the rod 35 is pushed by the actuating lever 11 and produces engagement between the rack 38 and the pinion 40 by virtue of contact with the peg 39, thereby causing the pinion to rotate, the rotation being transmitted through the transmission device as far as the hub 51, thereby rotating the arms 17 which carry the model planes or other moving targets 15.

To fire a shot at one of the said planes, a final push is exerted on the actuating lever 11, thereby bringing the same into contact with the extremity of the slot 31 of the trigger element 13, causing the latter to move back against the action of the spring 33 and to retract the tongue 30 from the firing chamber, releasing the ball which is suddenly discharged owing to the release of the spring 10.

If the discharged ball hits a target either along its rising or falling trajectory, the impact causes the target to be dislodged from the hook 56 of the arm 17 and to fall on the upper platform 3. The target may be replaced at will on the arm.

The discharged balls 19 fall on the platform 3 whether they were well aimed or oif target, and roll on to the ramp 18 to accumulate in front of the firing chamber which they enter in their turn.

The function of the helical damping spring 47 incorporated in the transmission system and housed within the body 50 of the post 14 is to assure continuity of rotation of the arms 17 during firing sequences, the said spring being loaded to a certain extent by each impulse received from the spindle 41 of the pinion 40, which load is released during the interval between two impulses, it being recalled that the pinion 40 is disengaged from the rack during the rearward stroke of the rod 35, as apparent from FIGURE 7.

In order to permit the game to be packed or stowed away, the gun 8 may be pulled out of its socket, as may be post 14, which is also mounted by friction fit in its own socket, this being possible by virtue of the coupling plates 43 and 45.

The present invention is not limited to the form of embodiment described and illustrated solely by way of example, and modifications may be made therein in respect of sizes, number of components, materials employed, coupling methods and other devices, without thereby exceeding the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A shooting game employing moving targets, said game comprising a base including a sloping upper platform, a gun having a firing chamber, said gun being adapted to fire ball-shaped projectiles and supported at the lower end of said upper platform, whereby projectiles which are fired fall on said sloping platform and return to the firing chamber of the gun, a post supported at the upper end of said platform, target means, rotor arms mounted on said post each having means for releasably supporting said target means, a manually controlled firing means for operating the ejection of projectiles from said firing chamber, the latter means comprising an actuating lever, and a transmission system connecting said actuating lever and said rotor arms for producing rotation of said arms upon operation of said firing means, said firing means further comprising an operating knob for said actuating lever, a firing lever coupled to said actuating lever and having an outer extremity which penetrates into the firing chamber of the gun, a coil spring on said extremity, a trigger element resiliently urged into said chamber to block the travel of a projectile, said trigger element being positioned for being acted on by the actuating lever after the actuating lever has undergone a first part of its travel such that when a thrust is exerted on said knob causing rotation of the actuating lever, the coil spring is compressed and bears against a projectile situated in the firing chamber, which projectile in its turn is held back by the trigger element thrust resiliently into the chamber, after which continued thrust exerted on the actuating lever causes retraction of the trigger element and discharge of the projectile by the sudden release of the spring, and a return spring for restoring the actuating lever to its initial position.

2. A shooting game employing moving targets, said game comprising a base including a sloping upper platform, a gun having a firing chamber, said gun being adapted to fire ball-shaped projectiles and supported at the lower end of said upper platform, whereby projectiles which are fired fall on said sloping platform and return to the firing chamber of the gun, a post supported at the upper end of said platform, target means, rotor arms mounted on said post each having means for releasably supporting said target means, a manually controlled firing means for operating the ejection of projectiles from said firing chamber, the latter means comprising an actuating lever, and a transmission means connecting said actuating lever and said rotor arms for producing rotation of said arms upon operation of said firing means, said transmission means comprising a rod having one extremity connected to the actuating lever of the firing mechanism and an opposite extremity, a swivelling rack coupled to said other extremity of the rod, a pinion adjacent said rack for being rotated thereby as the rod is displaced in one direction, a spindle coupled to said pinion for rotation therewith, a hub supporting said arms, a coil spring situated within the post connected to said spindle and said hub so that when the said rod receives a thrust from the actuating lever, the rack is brought into engagement with the pinion to cause a rotation which is transmitted to the coil spring and thereby to the hub of the rotor arms, whereas on being pulled back by the actuating lever after the discharge of a projectile, the rod causes the swivelling rack to be disengaged from the pinion so that during the rotation of said pinion, the spring is tightened resulting in continuity of rotation of the hub during intervals between projectile discharges while the pinion is inactive and the spring releases.

3. A shooting game employing moving targets, said game comprising a base including a sloping upper platform, a gun having a firing chamber, said gun being adapted to fire ball-shaped projectiles and supported at the lower end of said upper platform, whereby projectiles which are fired fall on said sloping platform and return to the firing chamber of the gun, a post supported at the upper end of said platform, targets, rotor arms mounted on said post each having means for releasably supporting one of said targets, a manually controlled firing means for operating the ejection of projectiles from said firing chamber, the latter means comprising an actuating lever, and a transmission system connecting said actuating lever and said rotor arms for producing rotation of said arms upon operation of said firing means, the moving targets including an integral projection, said arms including hookshaped extremities for releasably engaging respective projections of the targets, such that when a projectile strikes a target the latter is dislodged from its arm and falls on the sloping platform, each target including an abutment means situated in front of the said projection to prevent separation of the target from the said arm owing to inertia of the target.

4. A shooting game as claimed in claim 1 wherein said transmission means comprises a pair of coupling plates interposed between said post and said platform enabling separation of the post from the platform.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,348,283 8/ 1920 Koehl. 1,650,935 11/1927 Cox 273-105.2 X 2,210,079 8/1940 Hendrich 273-101 2,272,597 2/1942 Butler 273-105.2 X

o ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

M. R. PAGE, Assistant Examiner. 

